[MAGAZINE ARTICLE] Violets for Veterans

by Marcie Polier Swartz

Covid-19 has reached us all in one way or another since March and the VA is no exception. The decision to move Veterans from the street to the campus is the biggest news and it is working quite well thanks to VA’s rapid response to the pandemic, the great vision from VA leadership, the tireless staff, and community support.

The VA mobilized a team to bring the Veterans onto the campus, but the question then arose: how to feed them? The VA’s Services Council reached out to us and we assembled a team to meet the need. Brentwood School took on lunches and dinners Monday through Friday — all donated! Fresh Lunches became an invaluable partner, receiving Village for Vets’ allotment of donated food from Westside Food Bank each week and preparing meals for the cost of labor and delivery on the weekends. Village for Vets is purchasing the breakfasts from the VA Canteen. Anyone can buy meals for Veterans, you can donate to Village for Vets or Fresh Lunches.

All donations go directly to pay for meals.

You might be scratching your heads and asking why the government is not providing meals for this group. But for Veterans not living in “structured housing,” it turns out that providing food is strictly against policy. Obviously, we have contacted our elected officials to address this urgent need and will urge Congress to lift this restriction, even if only temporarily. The public is also welcome to make calls and send emails in support of this change.

So many of you have asked for volunteer opportunities for yourselves and your children. It’s a challenge when we must maintain distance, help to unload truckloads of donations that are heavy, mask up and stay safe. How about this? Let’s beautify the parking lot. Vets are in their tents with their belongings…and living on an asphalt parking lot…Will you help to make it pretty by buying them a small potted violet, vinca or verbena flowering plant?

NO CERAMIC OR GLASS CONTAINERS…just the small single plant plastic containers like those sold at Armstrong Garden Centers.

Please drop your donated small individual plants to the North Parking Lot. We will collect them and when we have 50, one for each tent, we will bring them to the VA for the team to hand out.

Thank you to the social workers who spend every day helping to make homeless Veterans feel safe and at home in a parking lot but most importantly, for helping them to find homes. We would like to give special mention to the VA’s Michelle O’Neil, Peter Capone-Newton and Bridget Kleinert. And thank you to the Foundations and to you in the community who support us for making our work possible.